Government to update GP contract to enable online patient registrations

The Government will lay secondary legislation today to enable online patient registration to GP practices.

In a speech given yesterday to the Policy Exchange think tank, health secretary Steve Barclay said the change will improve choice and convenience for patients.

Last week, NHS England and NHS Digital said a trial with 50 GP practices has shown an average time saving of 15 minutes per registration.

They have jointly developed the ‘Register with a GP surgery‘ online service, which has so far handled over 9,000 patient registrations.

NHS England said in a GP webinar yesterday evening that it is intending to grow the pilot to 600 GP practices, with practices invited to volunteer participation.

Meanwhile, in his speech, Mr Barclay said: ‘There are over six million GP registrations a year, with early testing suggesting online registration reduces processing time by 15 minutes for each application, as well as improving choice and convenience.

‘So we will lay out a statutory instrument next week to amend the GP contract to enable it.’

However the Department of Health and Social Care told Pulse the statutory instrument would be laid today to enable the changes.

A spokesperson added: ‘As set out in the 2022/23 GP contract, we are making regulatory changes to make explicit that patients may register with a practice online.

‘This would not be mandatory but will facilitate the planned roll out of electronic patient registration, making it quicker and easier for patients to register.’

Moving to online patient registration had been one of the improvements identified in the Government’s review of unnecessary GP bureaucracy.

NHS England representatives explained to GPs in a webinar last night that the work also includes rationalising the registration questions and information requirements where possible; as well as introducing an improved paper form option, which will become available in the next couple of months.

GPs were also told that they would gain access to the ‘easy-to-use integrated online registration option’, which all practices ‘should adopt and offer their patients’.

The BMA did not respond to a request for comment but former BMA England GP Committee chair Dr Richard Vautrey said he did not think practices would reject a move to an online registration process for those patients who wish to use it.

He told Pulse: ‘If it is set up appropriately, there is the potential that it could reduce practice workload, because effectively the patient will be inputting information that would normally be inputted by practice staff.’

In the same speech, Mr Barclay said work has been ongoing this summer to find a solution for reducing GP workload relating to prescription requests from patients who have been discharged from hospital.

He said: ‘Significant GP time is also taken up as a result of the interface with secondary care. And we have prioritised work over the summer in terms of how we reduce this burden for GPs, including prescription requests from discharged hospital patients.’

He also hinted that PCNs may be given more ‘flexibility’ with regards to non-GP staff they hire under the flagship Government scheme.

Mr Barclay said: ‘We are also working with NHS England to determine how additional flexibility could be brought into the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme in primary care networks so that we can free up GP time where possible.’

NHS England recently announced the ‘rapid recruitment’ of up to 2,000 additional social prescribing link workers, health coaches and care coordinators among measures to alleviate GP pressures this winter.

However, a large study last week revealed that ARRS has led to a decline in patient satisfaction, and has also not freed up time for GPs.

On workforce, Mr Barclay also said ‘colleagues in the Treasury will wish to consider’ making changes to the NHS pension scheme to improve retention of GPs.